Lee swearingen



L. SWEARINGEN.

Stock Car.

' Patented-May 29, 1860.

Witnesses:

Inventor,

AM. PHOTULITMECILNX (DSBDRNE'S PROCESS.)

UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEIoE.

LEE SWEARINGEN, OF VALLEY RIVER FALLS, VIRGINIA.

CAR FOR TRANSPORTING CATTLE, 85C.

Specication forming part of Letters Patent No. 28,517', dated May 29, 1860; Reissued April 11, 1871, No. 4,336.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LEE SWEARINGEN, of Valley River Falls, in the county of Marion and State of Virginia, have invented a new and useful Improvement in the Construction of Cars for Transporting Catttle and Stock Upon Railroads; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which Figure l, represents a perspective view of the body of a car built after my plan, the roof being removed to show the interiorthe trucks are not shown, but may be of any of the ordinary well known kind in common use. Fig. 2, represents a portion of a longitudinal vertical section through the car body. Figs. 3, 4, and 5, represent transverse vertical sections through the car body.

Similar letters of reference where they occur in the separate figures denote like parts of the car body in all the drawings.

In the transportation upon railroads, of horses, cattle, sheep, swine, &c.,either differently constructed cars must be used for the larger and smaller animals, or else with the latter there will be a great loss of car room in proportion to the weight of said animals. For horses and horned cattle, the partitions of the car must be vert-ical only, on account of their height. But for sheep or hogs, a horizontal partition must be used, to make the car a double decker, as they are termed.

The object of my invention is to make one car-body, capable of being converted into a single or double decker, at pleasure so as to carry or be capable of carrying any stock that is transported over railroads, ordinarily. And the nature of my invention consists, in so combining the partitions or divisions with the carbody, as that they may be used vertically or horizontally, to make the car a single or double decker, as may be required to carry larger or smaller animals.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe the same with reference to the drawings.

A represents the body of a car constructed after my general plan, in which there are three subdivisions a, Z2, c, but of course any other number of subdivisions less or more than three may be used. And the subdivisions may be made by tight or skeleton partit-ions, or simply studdings or posts. In these subdivisions of the car, I hang by hinges or other means of shifting or turning, the partitions or platforms d, e, f, so that one or all of them may be swung into a vertical position as shown at d, or into a horizontal position as shown at e, f in the several figures. lVhen horses or cattle are to be transported in such cars, the partit-ions are placed in a vertical position so as to form stalls in which they can stand; and these stalls may be in line with the lengthwise di* reetion of the car, or transverse thereto without changing the character of the invention. Vhen sheep, hogs, or small animals are to be transported, then the partitions are swung into a horizontal position, and properly supported braced or fastened in such horizontal position, so as to form a deck, or second floor, or apartment, or double decker as they are termed, thus economizing much room, and making one car capable of carrying economically the various kind of animals or stock usually transported upon railroads. Heretofore different cars have been used for carrying the larger and smaller animals, but by my plan but one kind is necessary to transport all kinds of cattle, whether large or small, and without any cumbersome arrangement, or loss of car room.

B is a sliding door, which has in it two sliding panels g, 7L; and the hinge c' of the partition e in the central subdivision is transverse to the hinges m of the partitions of the other subdivisions. This arrangement very much facilitates the loading of the animals, as follows: Suppose that horses or cattle are to be loaded into the car bodythe door B, is slid back, and the partition c, by means of its rods n, moving on ways o, is turned into a vertical position and then run against one of the end subdivisions, until the other is filled with its complement then slid against the filled compartment until the other is filled. lVhen sheep or hogs are to be loaded, all the partitions are swung, and fastened in any permanent manner, into a horizontal position-the door B is run up or shut, and the panel g, or h, used to make a communication into the upper or lower division or divisions of the car body as may be preferred.

titions with a'cattle car-body, as that said partitions may be swung into a vertical position to form stalls or apartments to contain horses orV cattle, orinto a horizontal position for forming an upper and lower compartment for containing sheep or hogs, substantially inthe manner and for the purpose set forth.

LEE SWEARINGEN.

Vitnesses:

A. I; HALL,V

WM. B. FLEMING. 

